With the one-year postponement of the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, it means there will be only about a half year until the start of the Beijing Winter Paralympics in March 2022. For most athletes, that presents no problem.
But most athletes are not like Momoka Muraoka.
Muraoka is a rare "double-duty" athlete who plans to compete at both summer and winter events, and she is determined to succeed in both Tokyo and Beijing.
"I doubt there has ever been athlete who has competed in [two] Paralympics over such a short span," said Muraoka, a multi-medalist in Alpine skiing at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Paralympics. "I'll give it my best shot to become the first."
Last year, Muraoka put away her sit-skis, foregoing the World Cup circuit so that she could focus full time on athletics, in which she competes in the wheelchair sprints. She has since been removed from the Japan Para-Ski Federation's list of designated athletes for development.
At the time, her intention was to compete at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, then return to skiing solely and use the time from late 2020 to 2021 as preparation for Beijing. But a worldwide pandemic altered that plan.
Instead. she will compete in skiing from October to December this year, then enter an international athletics event in January next year. In February and March, she plans to return to skiing for the world championships and the test event for Beijing. From April, it's back to the track in the run-up to Tokyo.
The topsy-turvy schedule also necessitates a great deal of travel.
"With the few chances you get, you have to perform at your best," Muraoka said. "It's a difficult challenge."
At the PyeongChang Paralympics, Muraoka brought home five medals, including a gold in the giant slalom. "Fundamentally, I am a skier," she said.
Muraoka saw her first competition as a third-grader in elementary school, and she has since continued her life in skiing that the exploits of previous Paralympians had made so intoxicating.
As for athletics, even Muraoka herself has been surprised as the progress she has made in the sprint events. In the 100 meters (wheelchair T54), she cut over one second off her own national record at an international meet in Australia in January, which moved her up to sixth in the Tokyo Paralympics world rankings.
"It's possible for her to win a medal," said an official of Japan Para Athletics, the national governing body for the sport.
From now, as there is the possibility that her rivals will improve their times as well, Muraoka will need to enter more meets.
It was not an easy decision for Muraoka to make in attempting the "double-duty" challenge. But once she did, there was no stopping her. "My feeling now is, 'I'm definitely going to appear in both Paralympics,'" said Muraoka, who is now preparing for the Japan Para Athletics Championships scheduled for September.
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